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Wednesday, May 10, 2017

Is Your Pet's Hospital AAHA-Accredited?

I am a BlogPaws Conference Sponsored Blogger on behalf of the American Animal Hospital Association. I am being compensated to help share information about the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) with my readers and fellow Influencers, Neither AAHA nor BlogPaws are responsible for the content of this article.

Finding a good companion animal hospital can be tough sometimes. We all want to make sure our pets are receiving the health care they so deserve. To make things even more complicated during the process of choosing the right animal hospital for your pet, not all hospitals are accredited.

Yes, you read that correctly. Nearly 60% of pet owners think that their pet's veterinary hospital is accredited when it's actually not. The only organization that accredits companion animal hospitals in the US and Canada is AAHA® - the American Animal Hospital Association. Only about 15% of animal hospitals in the US and Canada are AAHA-accredited.

What's the difference between AAHA-accredited veterinary hospitals and those that are not accredited?

Animal hospitals that choose to become accredited by AAHA show they are committed to meeting or exceeding standards in a variety of different areas. There are approximately 900 standards to be exact. AAHA-accredited veterinary hospitals are Thorough, Responsive, Sanitary and Safe. You can learn more about these standards here.

As many of you know, before I began blogging about pets I worked as a Veterinary Technician. The first animal hospital that I worked at was AAHA-accredited. We followed AAHA's set of standards to provide excellent care for our patients. While our practice was small, we were still able to deliver quality veterinary care to dogs and cats.

After a couple of years, our small animal hospital merged with a much larger hospital that was not AAHA-accredited. A few days ago, I visited their website and noticed that they have become AAHA-accredited since I stopped working there. I think it's a great choice that they've made to do so.

How do companion animal hospitals become AAHA accredited?

To be eligible for AAHA-accreditation, a companion animal hospital must be evaluated on approximately 900 standards that assess safety protocols, equipment, veterinary knowledge, and other key areas of pet health care. AAHA sends consultants to AAHA-accredited veterinary hospitals every three years to evaluate their adherence to the AAHA Standards of Accreditation.

In the US, all human hospitals that serve people with Medicare must be accredited through an accrediting body. They undergo regular reviews and quality checks to make sure they are providing quality care to their patients. However, not all animal hospitals choose to pursue AAHA-accreditation as it is not required by law. Accreditation for companion animal hospitals is purely voluntary.

State and provincial regulations can vary widely. Some states don't even routinely inspect companion animal hospitals and only go in for an inspection when a complaint is filed by a pet owner.

Choose an AAHA-accredited veterinary hospital.

Accreditation by AAHA is the only way to know a veterinary practice is the only way to know that a veterinary hospital is operating at the highest standards of excellence in animal care.

To check and see if your pet's hospital is AAHA-accredited or to find an AAHA-accredited veterinary hospital in your area, you can use AAHA's hospital locator tool. You can also use this tool to locate a veterinary hospital if you're traveling. It's always good to be prepared for emergencies.

If your pet's hospital isn't AAHA-accredited, strike up a conversation with your veterinarian about it. Be a champion for excellent care!

Is your pet's hospital AAHA-accredited? Tell us in the comments!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of BlogPaws 2017 Conference Sponsored Bloggers. The opinions and text are all mine.

8 comments:

Great article, Ann. As a former Vet Tech also, I agree 100% that an AAHA-accredited hospital is the best choice for providing excellent medical care for our pets. I have to drive past at least 10 different veterinary hospitals to get to mine (which is AAHA-accredited), but I would drive an extra 100 miles on top of that to go there if I needed to. There really is a difference!

Great information! It is always the best choice to select AAHA-accredited hospital for the best medical care for pets. I treat my pets only at an AAHA-accredited veterinary hospital and it certainly makes a huge difference.

I don't have time to read the whole post right now, but wanted to thank you for sharing it! I'll read it soon!

Our vet/hospital received their AAHA accreditation earlier this year. Like you mentioned, I always thought that they had it from the start; but I'm proud of Dr. Steve, Dr. Simpson, and all the staff for accomplishing such a great task.

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All content shared at Pawsitively Pets is written by Ann Staub unless stated otherwise. The information provided here is meant to be informative. This website is not meant to diagnose pet health problems, treat conditions, or replace veterinary care. All opinions shared here are our own and may differ from yours.